Perceptions of exercise mastery in persons with complete and incomplete spinal cord injury

Cross-sectional study.

To compare exercise-related self-perceptions in persons with complete and incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) and to identify factors that explain the variance of perceived exercise mastery in the study population.

Sunnaas Rehabilitation Hospital and the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Norway.

A total of 116 respondents (47 persons with complete and 69 persons with incomplete SCI) answered a questionnaire measuring self-rated physical exercise habits and self-perceptions in exercise. Respondents with complete SCI performed a max test on an arm ergometer.

Exercisers with complete SCI reported a significantly higher perceived exercise mastery (P=0.002) and exercisers with incomplete SCI reported a significantly lower perceived exercise mastery (P=0.012) than nonexercisers. Exercisers in both groups reported a higher perceived fitness (complete SCI, P=0.016; incomplete SCI, P=0.004) than nonexercisers. A regression analysis showed that exercising versus nonexercising (exercise status) was the only variable that contributed to the variance in perceived exercise mastery for persons with complete SCI (P<0.001). For persons with incomplete injury, exercise status and exercise hours per week contributed to the variance in perceived exercise mastery.

Although perceived fitness is associated with exercise in the whole SCI population, perception of exercise mastery is negatively related to exercise in persons with incomplete SCI, in contrast to those with complete lesions.